Door structure



Feb. 21, 1939. P. BESCHERER DOOR STRUCTURE Filed Oct. 12, 193'? 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 (Ittomeg Patented Feb. 21,1930

UNI ED STATE-S PATENT orrlca DOOR STRUCTURE Palmer Bescherer, York, Pa., assignor-to York Safe and Look Oompany, York, Pa, a. corporation of Delaware Application October 12, 1931, Serial No. 168,583

3 Claims. ((1109-70) This invention relates to a door construction adapted for use in installations where doors are turned about a vertical axis.

An object of the invention is to-provide an improved door construction in which the closure elements are capable of being moved from closed to open position and vice versa by mechanism so designed and associated with the closure elements that swinging movements of the closure elements through desired angles can be easily effected without the use of fixed hinges or similar pivotal ele ments fastened to the closure elements.

Another object of the invention is to provide. an improved door construction in which the clol5 sure elements of the door are operatively associated with swinging carriers in such a manner that the closure elements will be concealed from Figure 1 is a front elevation of asafe corlstructed according to the present invention. the

parts being in closed position;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the safe showing the closure elements in their respective pockets at the ends of the safe and the carriers for the closure elements in open position;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the safe with all parts of the door structure in open position;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1 and indicating by dotted lines the position or one of the closure elements when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a detail vertical section of one of the ends of the" safe withgthe carrier shown in the position illustrated in Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a detail hijrizontal section taken-on the line 6-4 of Fig. 5 showing the locking mechanism for the carrier; i

Fig. '7 is a detail vertical section of one end,

portion of the safe showing one of the closure elements therein; i 1

Fig. 8 is a vertical section taken on the line 8-4 of Fig. 1; and 5 Fig. .9 is a detail vertical section of a portion Fig. '7, the closure element and hinge sti or one end'ofthe safe, taken=on the line or being shown bydotted lines. f

its

Since among its various uses the invention is applicable to safes and vaults, in the instant case, the invention has been shown applied to a sale of well-known construction and comprising a top H, a bottom i2, end walls l3 and H, a rear 5 wall l5, and a front door frame l8.

For closing the front of the safe, one or more closure elements may be utilized, two closure elements l6 and I! being shown.

The door frame [8 and the closure elements I6. 10

and I] may be,-respectively, formed with interfltting tongue and grooved portions l9 and 20, so that when the safe is closed there is no direct passageway for heat or flames to the interior of the safe between the closure elements and the 15 door frame It.

The tonguing and grooving of the frame l8 and the closure elements ii'and ll, may be of any usual arrangement, and the closure elements may be provided with any usual bolt-work, indicated 20 generally by 29, and controlled in a. usual manner by a lock which may be a combination lock 30,

as shown in Fig. 1. Also the closure elements i6 and II are provided with handles II and 32,

respectively. 25

In accordance with the present invention, adjacent the end walls I! and M, the safe is formed with chambers or pockets 2| and 22, respectively, into which are adapted to be positioned the closure members I! and II, respectively, when the so safe is open.

Each chamber or pocket has a top 23, a bottom 24, a front wall 25, a rear wall 26, and an outer side or end wall 21. The end walls It and ll 'of the safe constitute the inner side or end ,walls of the chambers or pockets 2! and 22, re-

spectively, as shown in Fig. 2.

Since the walls of said chambers or pockets serve merely as means for enclosing the closure -elements l6 and H, such walls can be constructed from light plate and structural steel members,

which are suitably united together and attached to the main body of the safe in any desired manner, such as bywelding. 6

Operatively associated with the closure elements l6 and I! are carriers 34 and 3!, respectively. These carriers are adapted to support the closure elements in the manner to be hereinafter more ffilly described.

Each carrier i comprises a vertically disposed main body portion which is pivotallyconnected to the outer front corner portion of the chambers or pockets 2| and 22, by hinges 36, disposed respectively near the: top and bottom of each car- 5 position, asuitable locking is utilized,

such locking mechanism comprising, in the instant case. a manually operable latch 81 mounted on the carrier and having a fixed portion. and

a notched retractable portion I! which are adapted to engage with a tongue 40 carried by the end wall 21, in .the manner shownin Figs. 5 and 6.

The retractable portion 3! of the latch carries an operating knob 4|, so that the portion 39' can be moved out of engagement with the tongue 44 to thereby release the carrier and permti swinging movement thereof towards 'the front of the safe. when the fixed portion 36 of .the latch engages the tongue 44 when the carrier is swun outwardly, the swinging movement of the carrier will bearrested, and at the same time, the retractable portion of the latch will, due to the shape of its inner end, ride over the tongue and then snap into the position shown in Fig. 6, thereby preventing inward swinging movement of the carrier until the latch is first released.

Rrojecting from the upper and lower portions of each carrier are arms 43 and 44. These arms 46, an inner wall 46, an outer wall 41 and a bottom wall 46. The inner wall 46 extends only a short distance from the upper wall 45, so as to leave an open space or elongated slot 48 on the inside of the arms 43, for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

The arms 44 are formed with a bottom wall ll, an inner wall 52, an outer wall 53 and a top wall 64, the inner wall 52 only extending upwardly a short distance from the bottom Ill, so as to provide an open space or elongated slot 5 on the inside of the arms 44.

As shown in Figs. 1, 3, 4 and 6, the main body of eachcarrier l4, and comprises a sheet of plate steel, and this portion of the carrier has a width sufiicient to extend from a point adjacent the inner edge of the front wall portion 25 of the safe to a point adjacent the inner surfaces of the end walls I! and I4 of the safe, so that when the carriers are positioned against the front wall of the safe, the front edges of the door openings and the front of the chambers or pockets 2| and 22 will be closed, as shown in Fig. 3. Since the arms 43 and 44 constitute means for supporting the closure elements it and I! when the latter are being transferred from one part of the safe to another, said arms extend inwardly of the inner surface of the main body portion of each carrier a suitable distance, as shown best in Fi 5.

Mounted in "the arms 43 and supported from the upper wall thereof, is a grooved track 58.

The bottom wall ii of the carrier arm 44 supports a grooved traclr 59.

The top and bottom of the chambers or pockets 2| and 21 also support grooved tracks 60 and SI, respectively, as shown in Figs. 5, 7 and 9.

'Ihe tracks I4, I, ll and I may be form of suitable lengths of bar metal, the tracks ll md ll having a length substantially equivalent to the length of the arms 43 and 44 (see Fig. 5) so that when the carriers are positioned in the manner shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the inner ends of the tracks It and II will approximately abut the outer ends of the tracks I and 8 I, to thereby form a continuous track.

Carried by the upper portions of the closure elements it and II are spaced wheels 62 which are adapted to roll in the tracks I. and I0, and carriedby the lower portions of said closure elements are spaced wheels 43 which are adapted to roll in the tracks" II and BI (see Figs. 7 and 8).

Fixed to the front portion of the safe adjacent to the door frame 18, are heels ll, each having a cam surface 6 adapted to cooperate with the adjacent end portion 61 of the closure'elements l6 and "when the closure elements are being and grooved portions fl will be correctly positioned with respect to the tongue and grooved portions is to enable quick and easy lnterfltting movements of the closure elements in the door frame ll (see Fig. 4).

As shown in Fig. 2 the ends of the carrier arms are formed with openings II which are adapted to receive pins H on the ends of-the closure elements It and i1. This construction limitsthe outward movement of the closure elements in the carriers and when the pins Ii are disposed in the openings l0, lateral displacement of the closure elements with respect to the carriers will be prevented.

As shown in mg. '1, the pins'll do not project beyond the front edges of the closure elements, the extremities of the carrier arms being constructed in the manner shown in Fig. 2 to permit positiming the pins II in the openings II in such a manner that the front edges of the closure elements aline substantially with the outer ends of the carrier arms, (see Fig. 1)

At each end of the tracks I there is a stop I! for the purpose of limiting the inward movement of the closure elements (see Figs. 4 and 7) In operation, when the closure elements are in the closed position shown in Figs. 1 and 4, the

carriers 34 and 35 will be in the position in which the chambers or pockets 2! and 22 are closed.

When it is desired to open the safe, after the locking mechanism 30 has been released, the door handles 3| and 32 are operated to release the bolt-work 28. p I

The closure elements and their respective carriers are next swung outwardly to the position shown in Figs. 2 and 6. In this position, latch 31 will look its carrier in fixed position, in which the tracks of the carriers will. aline with the true in the chambers or pockets 2i and 22.

Each closure element is then moved manually into its respective chamber or pocket, the inward movement of the closure elements being arrested when the inner ends thereof abut the stops 13.

After the closure elements have been thus disposed in the chambers or pockets, the latches 31 are operated to release the carriers 34 and 35, so that said carriers can be swung inwardly against the front of the safe, to the position shown in Fig. 3.

In this way, the closure elements can be quickly transferred from a position in front of the safe to a position alongside of the end walls of the safe, and the carriers which support the closure elements in their closed and swinging positions can be positioned in front of the safe so as to frame the front thereofl In the latter position of the carriers the closure elements are entirely disassociated from the carriers.

When it is desired to close the front of the safe, the carriers are first swung outwardly to the position shown in Fig. 6. The closure elements are then pulled out of the chambers or pockets onto the carriers, and then the carriers, wih the closure elementstherein are swung inwardly against the front of the e, the registering of said closure elements with e door frame being effected by the actionof the end portions 61 moving along the cam surfaces 8 of the guide members or heels II. When theclosure elements have thus been positioned within the door frame ll, the handles 3| and 32 can be manipulated to set the bolt-work II, and the combination lock 30 operated to lock the closure elements in position, as shown in carrier and adapted to fit within said door frame when said carrier is positioned adjacent thereto,

' and means within said chamber for supporting said closure element when the closure element is slid from the carrier into said chamber, said carrier being movable to a position in front of the door frame when the closure element is disposed within said chamber. a

auaooa 2. A door structure comprising a walled structure having a front door frame, a chamber at one end of the structure and separated therefrom by an end wall, a carrier pivotally connected to the outer wall of said chamber and movable outward y from a position in front of said door frame to a position paralleling the outer end wall of said chamber, a closure element adapted to fit within said door frameto close the front of said walled structure, upper and lower horizontally disposed tracks mounted in said carrier, wheels carried by said closure element for engaging said tracks whereby said closure element is slidable in said carrier, upper and lower horizontally disposed tracks mounted within said chamber in alinement with the carrier tracks when the carrier is positioned parallel to the outer end wall of said chamber, said closure element being transferable from said carrier to said chamber when the respective tracks are alined, and said carrier being movable back to position adjacent the door frame independently of said closure element.

3. A door structure comprising a walled structure having a front door frame, a chamber at one end of the structure and separated therefrom by a vertical wall, a carrier having pivotal connection with said structure and movable from a position in front of said door frame to a position paralleling the outer end wall of said chamber, said carrier havingmeans for closing the front of said, chamber when-the carrier is disposed adjacent the front door frame, and a closure ele-- ment for said door frame slidably mounted in said carrier and'transferable from the carrier to said chamber, whereby said carrier can be disposed adjacent to the door frame independently of said closure element.

PALMER BESCI-IEBER. 

